Zakat collection in Indonesia reached US$231.6 million in 2012

Zakat collection has risen at a faster rate than GDP; between 2004 and 2012 GDP in Indonesia more than trebled while Zakat collection increased 15-fold.

Zakat is a mandatory form of alms for all Muslims who are able to pay it, and is one of the five pillars of Islam. Through Zakat, Muslims are required to give 2.5% of their accumulated wealth each year for the benefit of the poor or needy (and other recipients as highlighted in the Qur’an).

As a country’s GDP rises, so does the potential Zakat payable by its Muslim citizens. At an estimated 205 million, Indonesia is home to the largest Muslim population in the world. Between 2004 and 2012 Indonesia’s GDP more than trebled. In the same period, Zakat collection increased 15-fold, reaching an estimated US$231.6 million in 2012. Meanwhile, international humanitarian assistance to Indonesia decreased from a record US$1 billion in 2005 following the Indian ocean earthquake and tsunami, to just US$51 million in 2012.

Notes

GDP is measured in current prices.

Source

Development Initiatives based on Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Development Assistance Committee (DAC) and UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) Financial Tracking Service (FTS) data, the 2014 Islamic Social Financing Report and World Bank data.